Platform shoes



PLATFORM SHOES Filed May 14, 1957 I 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 In '1/ en to m RedT MczC/fienz/e Edward Quinn By zhz'r e ma y Nov. 3,1959 F. T. M KENZlEET AL 2,910,787

PLATFORM SHOES Filed May 14, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 F496 ii \fiiii'asa l5m/ mons' I fled TMacKenzz'e A Edward Quinn United States Patent PLATFORMSHOES Fred T. MacKenzie, Beverly, and Edward Quinn, Saugus,

Mass, assignors to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N.J.,a corporation of New Jersey Application May 14, 1957, Serial No. 659,150

1 Claim. (Cl. 36-19.5)

'our names, although it will be understood that the invention is notlimited to shoes made by that method.

In most respects platform shoes manufactured in accordance with themethods of the patent are comparable in uniformity of appearance,configuration and size with shoes made by more elaborate and expensiveprocesses, but the methods of the patent are not primarily directed tonor have they completely eliminated a particularly objectionable minordefect inherent in platform shoes.

The defect to the elimination of which the present finvention isdirected will become apparent from a brief description of a platformshoe made according to our prior method of the patent referred to. Sucha platform .shoe is constructed from a set of precisely cut matchedparts, including a sock lining of relatively thin, flexible :material, aplatform sole of thicker, more rigid material :than the sock lining, anupper, and a platform wrapper :strip frequently composed of two separateparts, both ends of which are overlapped. Before any sewing it done, :apreliminary step consists of securing the platform sole centrally on thetread surface of the sock lining leaving a generally uniform margin ofthe sock lining extending beyond the edge of the platform sole. Theupper and one part of the wrapper strip are then connected by stitchesto the margin of the sock lining by a seam inserted at a uniform,minimum distance outside the edge of the platform sole as the shoe partsare manipulated to bring their edges into register in advance of thesewing point. Thereafter, the second wrapper strip part is overlappedwith one end of the first part and the sewing continued to bring theother ends of the wrapper strip into overlapping relation. Afterassembly, the wrapper strip parts are both arranged with end portionsoverlapping, the two parts entirely encompassing the other parts. Toconceal the edges of the other parts in a subsequent operation themargin of the sock lining is folded into overlying relation with theedge surface of the platform sole and the wrapper strip parts are turned180 upon themselves to cover the overlying margins of the upper and socklining and then turned inwardly along the tread surface of the platformsole where they are secured. Because the seam in the sock lining isspaced at a uniform distance from the edge of the platform sole toprovide a free hinge action, the fold line in the sock lining andwrapper strip is more uniform than in shoes made according toconventional methods before the invention of the prior application. But,since two additional layers of material overlie the edge of the platformsole Where the ends of the wrapper strip parts are overlapped theexterior surface of the Wrapper strip bulges objectionably in theoverlapped areas.

Various expedients have been adopted to minimize these bulges whichadversely affect the salability and ice Patented Nov. 3, 1959 appearanceof platform shoes. Generally one overlap is positioned in areas such asthe inner shank, which are as inconspicious as possible. However, when atwo-part wrapper strip is employed there are two widely separatedoverlap areas to contend with. It is then the practice to locate oneoverlap at each side of the shank, forming a bulge at the outer shankwhich may be very conspicuous and highly objectionable. Anotherexpedient is to employ thin materials for the wrapper strip to minimizethe bulge resulting from the overlap. This solution, however, producesundesirable effects because such thin materials, which are otherwisesuitable for wrapper strips, generally lack strength and thussubstantially reduce the durability of platform shoes in which they areemployed.

It is accordingly a general object of our invention to improve theappearance of platform shoes. It is a more particular object to minimizeirregularities in the exposed surface of the Wrapper strip about theplatform sole. Another object is to enhance the appearance of platformshoes without sacrificing structural strength and durability. Stillanother object is to provide a precision platform shoe construction inwhich the exposed surface of the wrapper strip is substantially free ofbulges attributable to an excess of material about the platform soleedge in areas where the end portions of the wrapper strip parts areoverlapped.

Advantages of our novel shoe construction and other featurescontributing to the achievement of the foregoing objects will becomeapparent from the following detailed description of an illustrativeprocess and of a representative embodiment taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a view in perspective looking toward the bottom of a shoeembodying the present. invention, the parts of which shoe are in theprocess of being assembled by sewing, and a portion of the shoe bottombeing shown on an enlarged scale;

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view on an enlarged scale showing therelationship of the shoe parts including the first attached end of awrapper strip at the beginning of the sewing operation;

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 from a difierent angle but showingthe last attached end of the wrapper strip overlapping the firstattached end;

Fig. 4 is a bottom view of the shoe with a portion of the wrapper stripremoved and indicated in section to show its arrangement after beingsecured to the tread surface of the platform sole;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary sectional View on an enlarged scale showing moreclearly the arrangement of the overlapping portion of the wrapper strip;and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary transverse section taken across theshank portion of the shoe supported on a last and with an outsoleattached.

The shoe shown in Fig. 1 is in the process of being assembled andcomprises a sock lining 10 of relatively thin flexible material and aplatform sole 12 thicker and more rigid than the sock lining. As a steppreliminary to assembly of the other shoe parts with these two parts,the platform sole is secured on the central portion of the tread surfaceof the sock lining which is so matched dimensionally to the platformsole that a generally uniform margin of the sock lining extends beyondthe edge of the platform sole.

According to a feature of the present invention, the edge of theplatform sole is cut away to form a recess 14 at each side of its shank.In addition to the platform sole and the sock lining the other shoeparts include an upper 16 and a platform wrapper strip comprising aforepart 18, and a heel part 20. An outsole, which is later attached incompleting the shoe, is dimensionally related to the platform sole insuch a way that the exposed surface of the wrapper strip is insubstantial register with the edge of the outsole about the entirecontour of the completed shoe. In a shoe according to the presentinvention the platform-sole is smaller than the outsole which extendsoutwardly beyond-the edge of the platform sole about a major portion ofthe shoe a substantially uniform distance substantially equal to twicethe thickness of the wrapper strip plus the combined thicknesses of theupper and of the sock lining. Each recess in the platform sole isadditionally set back from the edge of the outsole a distance which maybe substantially equal to twice the thickness of the wrapper strip.

:In order better to illustrate the advantages of the present invention,the upper is of the open heel and open toe type extending rearwardlybeyond the shank and having integral heel strap members but it will beappreciated that the present procedures and construction are also usefulin shoes having other types of uppers.

The showing of Fig. l, in addition to the shoe, includes a fragment of asewing machine suitable for stitching the parts together, the machinebeing similar to that employed in performing the method of theabove-mentioned patent and to that disclosed in United States LettersPatent No. 2,742,005, granted April 17, 1956, upon an application ofEdward Quinn, one of the present inventors. The machine includes an eyepointed needle 22, an edge gage 24 against which the shoe parts areguided in edge register in advance of the point of needle operation, awork support post 26, a work feeding presser foot 28, a non-feedingpresser foot 29 and an automatic wrapper strip pilot comprising a roll30 to enable securing all the parts together with a single seam 32.

The shoe parts are connected together by the seam 32 passing throughtheir margins at a uniform distance from the edge of the platform sole.It is advisable first to present the upper and sock lining only to themachine in order to insert a few preliminary stitches along the innershank of the shoe. For correctly positioning the upper relative to thesock lining these two parts are provided with index points 34 along therecesses at the shank. The index points of the two parts are matched andthe parts arranged in edge register are initially presented to themachine for inserting the preliminary stitches. The leading end of theheel wrapper strip part is then positioned along the edge of the socklining between the index points .34 and a second index point 36 also onthe sock lining and the heel wrapper strip part is thereafter presentedto the machine in edge register with the sock lining and the upper incontinuing the seam. The edges of the parts are guided along the edgegage 24 by manipulating the platform sole, sock lining and upper whilethe wrapper strip is directed by the automatic pilot with littleattention on the part of the operator. After the seam has been continuedto a point past the other end of the wrapper strip at the outer shank,the forepart wrapper strip 18 is presented to the machine in overlappingrelation and in edge register with the other parts. An index pointsimilar to that designated by the reference numeral 34 is provided forcorrectly positioning the leading end of the forepart wrapper. Thelength of the heel wrapper 20 is such that its trailing end lies withinan area defined by the end walls of the recess at the outer shank. Afterthe first end of the wrapper forepart 18 is connected to the sock liningand the upper, the seam is continued about the toe of the shoe until thetrailing end of the wrapper forepart overlies the first attached end ofthe wrapper heel part. The length of the wrapper forepart also is suchthat its trailing end lies in an area defined by the end walls of therecess 14 at the inner shank as shown in Fig. 3.

After the upper, sock lining and wrapper strip have been sewn togetherthe seam-connected margins of the parts assume positions in overlyingrelation with the edge of the platform sole. The wrapper strip is thenturned 180, wrapped about the overlying margins of the parts,

4 and its free margin is secured to the tread surface of the platformsole as shown in Fig. 4.

In the present shoe construction the excess thickness of materialoverlying the edge of the platform sole in the area of wrapper stripoverlap is concealed within the recess 14 into which the excessthickness is received with the result that a relatively smooth exteriorcontour on the exposed surface of the wrapper strip is obtained insteadof an outward bulge, indicated in dot and dash lines at 38 in Fig. 4.The edge of an outsole 40, which is thereafter secured to the inwardlyextending margin of the wrapper strip is in substantial register withthe exposed surface of the Wrapper strip about the entire contour of theshoe, including the shank where the wrapper strip parts are overlappedas shown in Fig. 6.

in addition to concealing the wrapper strip overlap area the presentconstruction offers the further advantage of wide permissible tolerancesin the lengths of the wrapper strip parts. As may be seen in Fig. 5,when the length of the wrapper strip overlap is considerably shorterthan that of the recess, the outer layer of the wrapper strip bridgingacross the resultant void in the recess thus conceals the irregularity.As a result, the same wrapper strip parts may be employed for a widerange of sizes in the same style of shoe or, in the alternative, wrapperstrip parts, may be cut to length by the sewing machine operator withoutthe need for exercising meticulous care and without producing visibleirregularities.

Although the present construction has been illustrated and described inconjunction with shoemaking procedures in which the platform sole issecured to the tread surface of the sock lining before the parts areconnected together by sewing, it will be appreciated that some of thebenefits of our invention extend to platform shoes manufactured bydifferent processes. It will be appreciated, for example, that aplatform shoe in which the parts are first sewn together before theplatform sole is attached may be substantially improved in appearance ifthe platform sole is formed with a recess for receiving excessivethicknesses of materials in the area of wrapper strip overlap. It willalso be realized that, although the procedures have been illustrated anddescribed in connection with a platform shoe comprising an upperextending rearwardly beyond the shank and having integral strap membersthe benefits of the invention may be obtained even in shoes havingdifferently shaped uppers by certain modifications which will now beobvious to those skilled in the art.

Thus, for example in a shoe having an open toe upper which terminates atthe shank and is supplemented by a strap at the heel, it is possible tomodify the recess intended to receive the wrapper strip overlap in orderthat the rearward edge portion of the upper may be received thereinwithout bulging and to modify further the platform sole by providingadditional recesses, if necessary, for receiving the additionalthicknesses of the strap.

The scope of the present invention having been indicated andillustrative procedures and constructions specifically described, whatis claimed is:

An improvement in a platform shoe having an upper, a sock lining and aplatform wrapper strip connected together by a seam inserted throughtheir margins, the wrapper strip arranged with its end portions inoverlapped relation, a platform sole secured to the tread surface of thesock lining, the seam-connected margins of the upper, sock lining andwrapper strip positioned in overlying relation with the edge surface ofthe platform sole, the wrapper strip turned about the margins of theoverlying parts, and secured to the tread surface of the platform soleand an outsole secured to the bottom of the shoe, said outsole extendingabout a major portion of its contour a substantially uniform distancebeyond the edge of a platform sole, which distance is substantiallyequal to twice the thickness of the wrapper strip plus the combinedthicknesses of the upper and of the sock lining, in which improvement aremainingminor portion of the platform 5 sole edge is formed with alocal recess for receiving excess thicknesses of material overlying theedge of the platform sole in the region of wrapper strip overlap wherebythe exposed surface of the wrapper strip is in substantial register withthe edge of the outsole about the entire contour of the shoe.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 6Kamborian Feb. 5, 1946 Burns May 3, 1949 Chandler Mar. 27, 1951 WhiteJan. 11, 1955 Beckerman June 21, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS Netherlands Apr.12, 1954 Italy July 27, 1948

